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0. R. WYBORNEY.

CURRENT MOTOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY n, 1918.

Patented Sept. 9, 1919.

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M] 4 14,, mtozuu s C. R. WYBORNEY.

CURRENT MOTOR.

APPLICATION man MAY 11. 1918.

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Patented Sept. 9, 1919.

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UNITED STATESPATENT onnron.

CHARLES R. wnomm, or wrnnun, wAsH NG'ron.

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Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sph 9 191%} Application filedtra 17. 1918. Serial No. 235,149.

To all whom z'tmag] concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES R. WYBonmay, a citizen of the United States,residing at Wilbur, in the county of Lincoln and State of Washington,have invented certain new and useful Improvements inCurrent- Motors, ofwhich the following is aspecification. y y

This invention relates to current motors and has for its object theprovision of a motor which may be submerged in a flowing stream andwhich will be so constructed that it will offer a minimum resistance tothe force of the current as the working parts move against the currentand will utilize to its full extent the force of the current for thetransmission of energy.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 isa front elevationof a motorembodying my improvements;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation ofthe same; Fig, 3 is a transverse sectiononithe line 3-3 of Fig. l; y

Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view ofone of the blades; a a

Fig. 5 is a transverse section of theblade. In carrying out myinvention, Iprovide a cement orother substantial foundation 1 in the bedof the stream and upon this foundation I erect standards 2 which supportthe main driving shaft 3. Upon one end of the driving shaft I secure agear wheel 4 when meshes with a gear wheel 5 on the lower end of avertical transmission shaft 6 which is supported in suitable bearingscarried by the.

adjacent standards 2 andmay rise to any desired height and be connectedto any wellknown type of mechanism for transmittin power to the pointwhere it is to be ut111ze To the driving shaft 3, I secure wheelscomprising disks or circular plates 7 and blades 8 pivotally mounted inand extending between the disks. It will be readlly noted, uponreference to Fig. 1, that I have 1llustrated two wheels each consistingof three disks and two sets of blades. It will also be noted that theblades of one set in each wheel are arranged in staggered relation tothe blades of the other set of said wheel so that, in the operation ofthe motor, power will be transmitted constantly and pract1- callywithout interruption. This utilization of the power without interruptionwill be carried out to its fullest extent by disposing the blades ofeach wheel in staggered rela tion to the blades of. the other wheel sothat at all times during the operation ,of the motor there will beblades exposedto the propelhng action of thewater. It is also to beunderstood that the number of wheels may be, increased or diminishedaccording to width of the streamer the depth of the same andthe force ofthe current and other deter mining circumstances. r The bladeswillpreferably be composed of woodenbodies 9 reinforced by metallic strapsorfacing strips 10 so as. to obtain the max mumstrength without excessiveweight and without making the cost prohibitive. The pivot rod "11 oftheblade will extend longitudinally through the same, near onelongitudinal edge and the ends of said rod or shaft will be fittedpivotally in the disks 7 near the peripheries of the same, the ends ofthe pivot rod being at equal distances fromthe centers of the disks sothat the rod 1 willlie parallel with the driving shaft. I also secureinand extend between the disks longitudinally extending rods 12.1 and 13which perform the double function of bracingthe disks and also servingasrests or stops to control the position of the blades in the operationof themotor; The steps 12 are disposed near the peripheries of thedisks,but inwardly fromthe pivots l1. and

the stops 13 are disposed at points still further inward in position tobe engaged by the blades near the ends of their greater sections, and itis to be noted that the pivots 11 and the cooperating stops 12 and 13.are

all on different radii of the disks.

As previously stated, the pivot 11 is nearer one longitudinal edge ofthe blade than the other edge so that the blade presents sections ofunequal area at opposite sides of its pivot. Referring more particularlyto Figs. 2 and 3, it will be noted that when a blade is at the lowestpoint of the wheel, as shown by the dotted lines in said figures, itwill lie horizontally and will present the edge of its smaller sectionto the flowing stream. The blade will remain in this position, parallelwith the current, until the upper face of the greater section of theblade impinges against the stop 13 which will occur when the blade hastraveled about one-third of the revolution of the wheel. The blade willthen assume the position shown in dotted lines at the left in Figs. 2.and 3, and will lie on an angle of about ten degrees so that the currentwill impinge against the under face of the blade which is downwardlyinclined and will exert a lifting force against the blade therebyserving to impart motion to the wheel. The blade will remain inengagement with thestop 13, as shown in Fig. 3, until it has traveledabout one hundred and ninety degrees when the current will impingeagainst the then under face of the blade which is .not in engagementwith the stop 13, as

shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2 at the right, and the force of thecurrent will then swing the blade upwardly about its pivot 11 so that itwill describe an arc of about one hundred degrees and assume theposition indicated in Fig. 2. The force of the current then acting uponthe blade will tend to swing the same outwardly and downwardly, but atthis time the smaller section of the blade will have engaged the stop 12so that further movement of the blade about its pivot cannot occur andthe power of the current will continue to transmit motion to the wheeluntil the blade again reaches the lowest point of the wheel.

It will be readily noted that the stops 12 are rather close to thepivots of I the blades but slightly nearer the centers of the disks orside plates of the wheel than the pivots, while the stops 13 are locatednear the radius upon which the respective pivots 11 are located but muchcloser to the centers of the disks or side plates. When the blade,

therefore, is swung about its pivot, as described, the larger section ofthe blade will be carried away from the stop 13 and its smaller sectionbrought into engagement with the stop 12 so that the blade cannot atonce assume a position parallel to the current, but will be reversed sothat though it begins to travel against the current it will utilize theforce of the same for producing power. Inasmuch as the inner stops 13describe a smaller are than the outer stops 12 and the pivots, thecontinued travel of the wheel will gradually bring the free edge of thegreater section of the plate to and against the respective stop 13 sothat without being reversed the blade will assume a position in which itwill be acted upon by the current to transmit power.

My wheel can be built at a low cost and when set up for use and inoperation will transmit power continuously, the arrangement of the partsbeing such that each blade is inactive during only about one-third ofits travel and, if the wheel be equipped with four blades, during theperiod of inactivity instead ofone blade there will be three bladesactively transmittingthe force of the current. a

Having thus described my invention, what is claimed as new is:

A blade vfor a current motor consisting of a wooden plate, metallicreinforcement secured upon the faces of the plate along the edges of thesame, and a pivot rod extending longitudinally through the plate nearone longitudinal edge thereof and parallel with said edge and having itsendsprojecting beyond the ends of the plate, the reinforcements beingunited to form a support for the rod.

In testimony whereof I aflix'my signature. CHARLES R. WYBOBNEY. [1,. s]

Copies of this-patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner oi. Iatents,

p Washington, I). O.

